Metro Atlanta jobless rate rises to 8.9 percent

Associated Press – published Thursday, July 25, 2013

The Georgia Department of Labor announced the new numbers early Thursday.

The 8.9 percent jobless rate for June was up seventh-tenths of a percent point, from 8.2 percent in May. That was still under the 9.3 percent rate in June a year ago.

The labor department said the rate increased primarily because of two seasonal factors: large numbers of education workers are unemployed during the summer and new graduates are considered unemployed until they find a job.

Metro Athens had Georgia's lowest area jobless rate at 7.2 percent.

The Heart of Georgia-Altamaha region in central Georgia had the highest rate at 12.9 percent.